ISLAMABAD, March 1: Broken wheel chairs, worn out stretchers and stinking rooms in the 24-bed emergency ward of Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) seriously dent the institute’s image as one of the prestigious tertiary medical care hospitals of the country.

Sources told Dawn that hundreds of patients daily visited the hospital, not only from the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad but also from the adjoining areas.

Dr Sohail, Assistant Director of the Emergency Ward, told this reporter that they repeatedly requested the hospital administration to replace the equipment, but things remained unchanged creating more difficulties for the patients and the hospital staff.

“We had arranged around 18 wheel chairs for the emergency ward with the help of local philanthropists, but they, too, need replacement now,” he said. He was hopeful of getting new stretchers through the financial assistance of some philanthropists. He said everyday 100 to 200 patients came to the emergency ward for treatment.

Another disturbing factor is that there is no waiting room for the relatives of the patients and they have to spend days and nights under the open sky in front of the gate of the emergency ward.

Though the parking of vehicles in front of the emergency ward is strictly banned and security staff keep asking the people all the time to park vehicles in the parking lot, influential people pay no heed to their requests and feel pride in parking their vehicles right in front of the ward.